For Want of a Painted Nail
by Poop Benedict
Summary: AU. Sailor V disappeared on live television. Now years later, the Senshi must deal with a world without Sailor V there to guide them.
1. Prologue

A/N: Timeline wise this takes place after the end of the Sailor V manga, a brilliant read btw. I actually prefer it to Sailor Moon. So Ace is dead and Mina remembers everything. Nobody else but the cats know anything.

Standard Disclaimers Apply.

* * *

 **Prologue**

* * *

"You don't know when to give up do you? Normally I'd find that attractive but you're just annoying!" She was taunting but really, she was tiring out. She'd been transformed as Sailor V for over half a day now and this guy was fighting her near constantly for almost half that. Usually this would only mean she'd be sleeping in class tomorrow but this time she was beginning to get worried.

It's not like this monster-of-the-week was especially strong. She was Sailor V, nothing can beat her. The problem was that he wasn't the _only_ monster of this week. Ugly McGravityMaster was actually the ninth and it was only Thursday. She'd only gotten about four hours of sleep collectively and she was starting to feel it. Not to mention her compact was running out of juice.

" **I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE THINKING, V. YOU CAN'T HOLD OUT MUCH LONGER CAN YOU?"** This fight might have gone much better if this bastard was easier on the eyes. Like Ace. Okay maybe not as hot as him. Hot enough to ogle but not enough to regret killing.

" **I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE THINKING, V. AND THAT WAS VERY HURTFUL."** Great, now she felt bad too. Artemis was trying to help with her habitual shallowness but it was slow going, not because of any resistance on her part mind you. She would have a larger pool of lovers to choose from if she could look past the surface, after all.

" **I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE THINKING, V. AND THAT IS VERY ADMIRABLE. EVEN IF IT'S FOR ODD REASONS..."** Minako has officially had enough of this. "I don't need your praise! V KICK!"

The eight foot humanoid abomination tumbled back but caught himself before he fell off the radio tower. It was a very strange sight to see a giant purplish black monster getting tossed around by a barely five foot girl but that made for quality TV. And there was TV. Plenty of it. All around. Mina was loving it.

"You just got your ass handed to you by a little girl on national TV." Minako posed for the cameras and the people below who couldn't really see. The one's who used binoculars were far more interested in the unique view from below. **"YOU SHOULD BE THE ONE GETTING EMBARRASSED. I KNOW WHAT THEY ARE THINKING DOWN THERE, V. YOU SHOULD WEAR BICYCLE SHORTS UNDER THAT SKIRT."**

Mina blushed and tried to rescue what was left of her modesty but it was obviously too late. Deciding she had nothing left to lose but this fight, Minako decided to end this, go home and visit the Sporting goods store on the way.

"I'm done. Gimme five minutes." It only took two.

The scene was classic. Sailor V stood victoriously over her opponent hanging off the edge of the tower. "Give up. I've won." The monster chuckled even though it was only hanging on thanks to its weakened gravity power. **"I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE THINKING, V. YOU THINK YOU'VE WON."** "Yeah, duh. I _told_ you. ' _I won'_ to your face." But he continued unperturbed. **"BUT I'VE GOT YOU RIGHT WHERE I WANT YOU."**

It looked like obvious posturing in the face of defeat but the senshi had too many fights to take that chance. Immediately, she threw herself to the right, narrowly dodging the portal that formed in her former position.

 **"I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE THINKING, V. WHAT IS THIS? IT'S A PORTAL TO THE DARK KINGDOM. MY HOME."** _Thank you, ._ So this was their plan. Weaken her to the point of exhaustion and toss her into the dark kingdom when her guard was down to finish her with the home field advantage. "Nice try, you bastards. But you overestimated how tired I've gotten. _CRESCENT SLENDER BEAM!_ "

With sudden speed, the monster dodged the beam and jumped into the portal. His laughter was amplified through the portal. **"I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE THINKING, V. BUT YOU'RE WRONG. THE POINT OF WEAKENING YOU WASN'T TO LOWER YOUR GUARD. BUT TO LOWER YOUR DEFENCE AGAINST** _ **THIS! BLACK HOLE TWISTER!"**_

Through the portal Minako could see a black ball appear in front of the monster and felt an immense strength pulling her towards it. She managed to grab onto the tower but it was useless, the entire tower was twisting, pulled towards and through the portal.

Distantly she could hear Artemis crying for her and was a little happy that he was saying Minako and not Sailor V. That small detail meant the world to her. "ARTIE! Get back and save those guys in the helicopters!" If they stayed in the air, they would get sucked in too so she had to something about them.

Smirking, she decided to start the plan like usual. With a bang. "Y'know? You idiots in the Dark Kingdom really screwed up with this! I've been hunting you bastards for years all over the world and here you go and open the front door for me! Red carpet and everything! You know what they say. If you do not enter the tiger's cave, you will not get the tiger meat!

"ARTEMIS! SORRY BUT I'M GONNA GO OUT FOR A BIT! I'LL BE BACK SOON!" Silently, she added so only the cat could hear, "Thanks for everything you've done for me. You're the best best friend ever.

"CRESCENT BOOMERANG!" Minako threw it at the helicopters as she leapt at the portal, the entire radio tower following at her heels. The attack broke off the rotor mast of both choppers and flew in the portal after its owner.

"MINAKO!" Artemis howled but was soon occupied with saving the idiots in the plane who were still filming for some god awful reason, even when a crying white cat was lifting like all six of them at once with its mouth. Idiots.

"The helicopters! They're getting sucked in!" One of them cried out and true enough, the falling copters were now defying gravity, pulled upwards towards the black hole. Or as what science Artemis could remember was telling him, it was simply obeying an even stronger gravity. Being further away and having less mass saved Artemis and his cargo.

The same couldn't be said for the radio tower, which was almost completely swallowed up by the portal. What little was yet to be consumed was a mangled mess of metal. Thankfully, the black hole meant that no debris would fall on the quickly dispersing crowd below.

"Goddamnit. I don't think our insurance covers 'sucked up by a black hole'." The cameraman lamented but continued to film and the one from the other station laughed. "Sucks to be you. I checked ours and it says it _does_ cover black holes."

"Both of you shut up! If this is a real black hole, we're all fucked." A reporter chastised and Artemis had to agree. But if he knew Minako and he did, no _does,_ she would take care of it.

"VENUS LOVE MEGATON SHOWER!"

A bright light exploded out of the portal and promptly closed it, cutting off the black hole's effect. Fortunately this saved everyone in the area and what was still standing of the radio tower. _Un_ fortunately this also meant the debris that was being sucked towards the portal was free to fall on anyone stupid enough to hang around after everything that happened. Sadly, this was a dishearteningly large amount of people.

Screams and chaos ensued soon after and Artemis wasn't fast enough to save everybody but that loss didn't even register till a while later.

Right now, he was mourning the loss of his best friend.

* * *

A/N: You might've guessed but this is an AU where Sailor V was sucked into the Dark Dimension on live TV way before Usagi even met Luna. This causes a.. _few_ changes to the timeline. More on that next chapter.. If you wanna find out, review and tell me you do.

Mina being the primary cause for the change makes her important but every senshi is heavily involved. Inner and Outer.

Just so you know, the changes don't mean they're OOC. I'm trying my best to keep them as close to the original as possible, a mix of the manga and anime. For the sake of comedy, however, none of them are gonna act all cool and stoic all the time like they usually do.


	2. Chapter 1

**A/N** : I'd apologize for the late update but I guess I'm a bit beyond forgiveness at this point. Excuses at the bottom if you want to hear them. Anyhoo. Here you go. Hopefully this was worth the wait.

* * *

 **Chapter 1:** _Changes_

* * *

05:59 AM

Ami wakes up moments before her alarm rings and is already turning it off by the time the generic tone blares out of her cell phone.

 _She did not know why she had one, she never left the house and she only had her parent's and the hospital's number on it anyway._

She takes her time cleaning herself up but does so efficiently, no reason to rush but no use in dragging her feet either.

 _There was nothing to look forward to either way._

Ami forgoes her grooming to simply eat her breakfast, cereal. It seemed her mother had to rush today. It was fine. She doesn't taste it, instead focusing on the text book in front of her. She was going to quiz herself on this later today and it was imperative she memorize as much as she could.

 _She was going to ace it with or without it but didn't know what else to do while she ate._

 _She hated this cereal._

07:20 AM

This would be when she would leave home if she still went to school. It was a bit on the late side but the only good school around for miles was walking distance from her house. As it was, she stayed home and continued reading her book.

Sometimes, her eye would stray out her window, catching the sight of boisterous students enjoying each other's company pass by and stare longer than she would usually approve. Curious. They seem to value each other more than their education. Ami stares for nearly half an hour before she snaps herself out of it, adjusts the time table in her head and moves her work station away from the window.

 _Even if she still went to school, she wouldn't have any friends. Right now, be it at school or at home, she would still be reading this book._

* * *

Breakfast was a lively affair in the orphanage but that was how Usagi liked it. She didn't like being alone for very long. However, today she was called to skip it to talk about her adoption, a topic she'd purposefully avoided frequently.

Despite being, quite possibly the oldest child at the orphanage, Usagi hadn't actually been here very long, her family having only passed away just a couple of years earlier. Of course the wounds were still raw and Usagi was the type to cry a lot but the tears had long since run dry and the kids here helped her understand her situation a little and focus on being an appealing enough child for adoption. The appointed therapists helped a lot.

Of course when the time came, Usagi found that she was not in fact ready to call a bunch of strangers her family. But she was in no position to complain. She was fourteen and not many parents were looking to adopt that late. Compared to some of the other children here, she was downright lucky. Her best friend here, Narumi, was one of the less fortunate.

Having hit adulthood in the orphanage, he opted to work here, knowing more than any other employee what these kids were going through. He was cool and strong and attractive and totally Usagi's type but unfortunately, as sympathetic as he was to the orphanage, Narumi kept his personal life as far from it as possible, dashing any of Usagi's romantic prospects with him.

That didn't change how much she admired him, though.

"You don't have to worry one bit, Usako. They're a good well-to-do family and I've spoken to them. They aren't bad people. I've been here a while, I _know_ a bad family when I see one. You'll fit right in." She didn't doubt that. She saw the pictures and they looked exactly like her late family. Tall, dark haired and spectacled man and a slight woman with a strange hair color, they were almost exactly like her actual parents.

"Probably a little too well…" She muttered but he didn't catch it. A little louder she wondered, "Why can't I just work here like you? You look, like, sort of happy." Narumi chuckled. "That has almost nothing to do with this place, Usako." He said amused but didn't elaborate, frustrating Usagi. She spent a long time getting closer to him and she's still just part of the orphanage to him.

" _Hmpf._ Fine. Tell me about these people, then. Koino…?" He jumped at the opportunity to steer the conversation over to her potential adoption. "Aino. Sanae and Takagi Aino. They've been looking to adopt for a while now but their daughter's death put those plans on hold. Apparently they decided they're ready for a new member of the family since they asked for you. The woman, Sanae, asked for you specifically."

Usagi was honestly surprised. Their story was tragic to be sure but what struck her was how their story paralleled her own almost perfectly. No way that they faked it, even Narumi doesn't know about the circumstances around Usagi's family's passing.

"When…when did their daughter pass away?" Suddenly, she felt her apprehension turning into anticipation. Nobody wanted a teenager, no matter how well behaved. Not when a perfectly good toddler or pre-teen was ripe for adoption. For them to ask for _her_. Maybe this family…

"Er. Is that really important?" Usagi glanced away and tried to keep her voice light, she was _not_ a good liar. "J-just curious. Don't wanna step on any bad wounds, y'know?"

She could feel his eyes on the side of her face but she remained resolute. "This doesn't say… but… the requests for adoption were cancelled around eight years ago. Does that mean anything to- Hey, Usako!" Narumi yelped as she snatched his file out of his hands and skimmed all the information she could find. It was true… If they waited a bit before canceling the request that would make it just nine years ago.

 _Nine years… I must be right. Them and me… We're the same._

Quickly, before Narumi could scold her, Usagi shoved the file back in his arms. "I'll do it! I'll meet them!" The sudden mood change threw him off and she took advantage of his surprise to escape. "I'm hungry and it's your fault so you owe me food. Don't you forget it!"

 _It might not be healthy…No, it's definitely not good for any of us. But maybe… I can… With the Aino's. Just maybe. We can help each other._

* * *

12:37 PM

It is scorching outside and it's become difficult to focus, so Ami decides to rest. A short lie down. She needed it more than she anticipated and she immediately falls asleep, a mistake she would regret when she wakes up.

 _She dreams of a Silver Castle and so many colors surround her. It is warm and crowded and happy and happy and happy…_

17:40 PM

A lie down becomes a nap and a nap ends up eating away her afternoon. She had slept through lunch. Ami decides against eating and instead studies to try and make up for lost time.

 _She doesn't regret it and cannot wait to do it again._

* * *

By the time Makoto left for home, it was so late the sun was setting. But it couldn't be helped, she had so many club meetings today and she'd made it to a point not to miss even one.

Judo in the morning was tiring but the team depended on her strength for competitions. Not to mention how fun it was for her and she always had energy to burn so it felt good to shave off that excess before school or she would feel restless all day.

Then the Drama club dragged her in for a meeting during recess. Makoto didn't really go onstage for them, being a simple stagehand but her input was valued and her contribution to making costumes was invaluable.

Then after school, she had to participate in the Science Club. That wasn't really her choice. Makoto wasn't doing so hot in Science and her teacher thought she had the potential if she applied herself so she was made to join the club he was in charge of to give her some extra tutoring. It helped for sure but it also taxed her non-academic mind something fierce.

After all that, Makoto was just about ready to just collapse but the Student Council begged her for help and thoughtlessly she agreed. They were her seniors and she thought the Vice President was really cute. They worked her to the bone with paper work but they praised her greatly for being a reliable first year and promised her a spot on the Council in her second year so it was worth it.

It was just going to be more work for her next year but the Vice President was a second year so Makoto could get closer to him before he graduates. Lucky~!

All in all, a good if busy day but Makoto liked being relied on. It felt nice to be needed by so many people. It was such a change from her previous school where she was ostracized for her height and strength. Now, she was admired for it.

She actually _liked_ going to school now and really, the setting sun was really pretty.

On a whim, she chose to walk home instead of taking the bus. She was tired but the day was right for it and if Makoto was being honest, she didn't really want to be home right now.

By the time she made it home it was night out and she was just about ready to collapse but Makoto stayed right outside her apartment building for just a few moments longer, enjoying the night air and the calm.

Checking her phone, she noted the chat messages from the clubs she had tomorrow and various requests for help. Her inbox was filled up with so many messages and the sight warmed her heart. It was truly amazing how different her life was now.

Maybe she should just quit them all join the Helpers club. Then she could help them all. Chuckling at the thought, she glanced up at the night sky, appreciating the stars that had just revealed themselves.

 _Pretty…_ _Maybe I should join the Astronomy club_.

But she was interrupted from her star gazing when she received a call. Glancing at the caller id, Makoto sighed in resignation before picking up.

"Hello … Yeah, I'm almost there … No, it was just my clu- … No, really it was just- … I'm sorry, I'll be right there … Yeah. Ok … Ok."

Immediately, the phone cut off but Makoto let the phone stay at her ear long after the call ended.

"Love you too, Mom."

Sighing, Makoto stayed out a bit longer so it would seem like wasn't loitering outside. Her parents were gonna chew her out so hard... With one last glance at the night sky, she made her way into the apartment.

Venus was especially bright out tonight.

 _Maybe I_ should _join the Astronomy club._ It might mean she could stay out of the house at night for club activities.

* * *

09:21 PM

She ends up acing the quiz she made for herself but she missed dinner. Ami considers skipping it but decides against it. She needed it even if she didn't want it.

There was something ready in the microwave, apparently her mother was home. She heated it and ate it in front of the TV. She barely paid attention to either the meal or the news.

She tried to study but couldn't focus so she instead cleaned up and went to bed.

 _She can't help it. She looks forward to it._

10:07 PM

She falls asleep almost immediately.

 _Golden hair swims in her vision and all she feels is love._

* * *

Rei's eyes flew open as she awoke from her nightmare in but otherwise remained silently on her bed, sweating heavily.

It was no rare occurrence and she was almost used to it. Dreams she could not make heads or tails of. Nightmares that made no sense to her but shook her to her very core. The images she saw never faded but never made any sense either, no matter how many times she saw them. And she'd seen them a lot. For about a decade now.

The nightmares often were repeat performances of the same slideshow of images, a poisoned sword, crumbling castles and whole lot of red, white and golden. A tale she used to know very well but just couldn't quite recall the plot anymore.

But tonight was different.

There was nothing of the usual grand palaces, silver crystals and close friends. More of red ribbons in golden hair, crows and hospital rooms. It felt more personal than usual. More like a vision than a sad memory. Rei not understanding hasn't changed but that last image was familiar. She's been in that hospital room before. In fact, she would visit it today, to see her mother. Depressing on any day but this room was empty in her dreams and that scared her more than anything she's ever seen before.

The room was empty.

She wasn't especially spiritual and now especially Rei refused to believe that these dreams, no, _nightmares_ meant anything. Perhaps she could ask her grandfather on the matter, him being head priest of his shrine, but Rei wasn't supposed to see him till the weekend. Her father didn't like having him _influence_ her with his eccentricities.

For a moment Rei wondered if she could just ignore this feeling of dread she felt tonight of all nights. But ultimately unable to shake it, despite the ungodly hour she resolved herself to do something about it.

Her silk sheets shifted as she moved out of them quickly and got dressed as quietly as possible. She was always silent but the large mostly empty house carried even the smallest sounds. No one would care what she did but Rei preferred her father not knowing where she was.

School would start in a few hours but she had no intention of going there anyway. She didn't need it, the teachers would do nothing about it and her father didn't care. As long as the public didn't know, Rei could do as she wished. And Rei had to see her mother immediately.

With uncharacteristic boldness, Rei chose to use the window for her escape. Something about this night was making her a little braver. A little stronger.

As she leapt from the window to the adjacent tree with absolutely no grace, unused to physical exertion or unladylike activities such as _climbing trees_ , Rei with no prompting held the other images from her dreams tonight in her mind.

Not the crows. She never liked those ugly garbage eating rats of the sky.

The ribbons and hair. Something about them brought her an odd feeling of comfort. Odd but deep rooted. Rei never felt this introspective before, perhaps she really _should_ see her grandfather about this.

* * *

06:00 AM

Her alarm rings but Ami does not wake up immediately. She never expected to sleep through it so it was only set to ring once. She oversleeps and when she wakes, she does not regret it.

She is in and out of the bathroom in a flash and instead of an early study session opts to look up how to cook with what she's got in her fridge. The morning is spent on her attempts and by the time she finally turns to her books, she is still hungry but smiling.

 _She is waiting for something she doesn't even know is coming._

* * *

 **A/N** : Anyway, my excuse is that I had another story I was working on (Any Love Live! + Comedy fans? Check it out.) Now that I'm having difficulty on that story, I thought I'd work on this to get through the Writer's block and when I looked over the material I'd left, everything kind of fell into place and this monster of a chapter was born. Full disclosure tho? I was gonna drop this story. But yesterday a certain someone dropped a favorite on this story and I just can't let it die like this if people actually liked it. See where feedback gets you? **Review!**

About the story itself;

Unlike the other one I'm working on, I have a solid story in mind for this one. A plot, character development, the whole nine yards. Whether I get it in writing is the question. Here's to getting it, yeah? But the writing is insanely different. I wrote this over a long time so you can see where it seems like more than one person wrote this. The difference between this chapter and the first one is crazy. However even if this never gets as popular as the other one, which I write with zero planning and effort, this is still the one I'm more proud of.

Almost no comedy here, I'm seriously surprised myself. Hopefully all y'all who came because of the prologue aren't too jarred. Consider it early installment weirdness. Or that comedy is a Minako thing.

Anyway, as you can see, this is heavily AU. Usagi is an orphan, Rei lives with her father, Ami doesn't go to school, Makoto's parents are aliive! It's all gone CRAAAZY! But as people, they are largely the same even if I've highlighted a few changes. This is just the beginning tho.

Addressing shipping... it's not gonna be the focus but if there's gonna be any shipping in this, it's gonna be yuri. Sorry, het fans. I just kind of really don't like SenshixShitennou. I can add hints of it tho. The yuri shippings are flexible tho. Except Reinako. That's definitely happening. Subtext or not. Sorry.

I actually like this story now, so expect a lot more. Sorry for the long A/N but I felt like I had to explain myself.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N** : Hopefully this jumbo chapter was worth the wait.

* * *

 **Chapter 2: _Return_**

* * *

"Okay so I understand that you're going to bring _her_ back but what I _don't_ get is what _I'm_ supposed to be doing." Mamoru despite all of the flashy capes and roses was perfectly down to earth and understood his limits. Trans-dimensional portal opening is one of the many things that lay beyond that line.

He didn't know what to expect when he was called by his mysterious benefactor of four years to finally meet face to face, in his experience anything was possible and he's done well to remain unflustered by most of the weirdness that came with learning more about the Silver Millennium and his mysterious connection to it.

But none of that prepared him for his benefactor, 'Artemis', to be a pure white talking cat that operated ancient but state of the art moon tech with its paws and to be in the same room as a world famous violinist wearing a sailor outfit who was still expecting to be taken completely seriously.

Then they explained what they were doing and their appearance became the _least_ strange thing about them.

"Do not worry." Artemis assures him and he is sure he will _never_ get used to the fact that this _cat was talking to him._ "No offence meant but we do not expect you to do much, Tuxedo. It is just to have an extra pair of hands."

"Indeed. Leave _all_ the heavy lifting to me." The woman calling herself Sailor Neptune like he didn't look like the type to have heard the name Kaioh before, assures him in a way that's comforting while still being perfectly condescending. Mamoru being a progressive man of the new millennium knew better than to be bothered by a woman being stronger than him in every way conceivable but he got the strange feeling that this was a situation he should get used to for a long _long_ time.

But if it would get him the answers to his dreams, or according to the white talking cat, his memories, as Neptune said he would, he'd put up with the strange duo for as long as necessary. And he'd done so for so long, he might even call Neptune a friend even if she wouldn't.

"Forgive me but if what you're dealing with is extra dimensional, any complications that could arise _probably_ won't be solved too easily even if I threw a couple of roses at it." Artemis stopped doing what looked like typing into a transparent console and turned his small body to face him fully.

"You are more than your combat abilities, Tuxedo. Please remember that and try only to do what you can and no more." The cat returned to its console and a glance at Neptune confirmed that she had no clue about what he was talking about either. "We are capable of a lot but we cannot quite raise the dead _yet_."

 _Yet?_ Tuxedo Mask wondered but let it pass. They were starting.

"I have my _own_ questions about this and most of them I'll save for later." Neptune spoke as she placed her mirror into an interface and began scrying. "But why did you wait? I stole this machine last month and you figured it out earlier this week."

Mamoru was there for that mission. It was just him and her against a Dark Kingdom run factory. One of the only remnants after Sailor V disappeared, ending any future activity by them. It was frankly quite terrifying to see a woman much smaller than himself tear a machine twice his size off the ground and carry it away.

Artemis remained quiet for so long that Mamoru wondered if he was even going to answer but the console binged in what he assumed was a good sign as Neptune stopped scrying.

"Alright, found it. It's going to be rough but if I pour everything I have into the machine I can keep it open for long enough." Neptune was already at a different interface but Artemis disagreed.

"No. You are not enough alone. Tuxedo. I need you to grab this interface and _agree._ " The cat told him from a similar interface as Neptune's. Despite his doubts, Mamoru decided to obey for now. Artemis hadn't given up much about his past but he'd been helpful before and honestly, he felt he could trust him. He had the same aura as both Neptune and himself. Like someone desperately looking for something important to them but unlike Mamoru and Neptune, Artemis seemed to know what he's looking for and how to get it back. Perhaps that's why they had so much faith in him.

As the interface locked around his wrists, Mamoru understood the vague instructions the cat gave as he felt a pull at the back of his mind. Reluctantly, Mamoru _agreed_ and felt a whole lot of _something_ being pulled straight from within him.

As the pull got stronger and his legs began to buckle, Mamoru felt more than heard the machine shuddering in approval of the _something_ it was getting.

 _At least it's working._ Mamoru thought as he sank to his knees and felt himself lose consciousness.

Right before he returned to dreams of that golden haired beauty that relentlessly haunted him, he barely heard Artemis whisper behind him.

"There _is_ a reason I chose this day... Today is special."

* * *

"Hotaru, please try not to wander off too much, okay? The hospital's a bit understaffed right now and mommy needs to help too, so I can't have someone watch you." Of course Dr. Keiko Tomoe knew all this was unnecessary as her daughter, being the least rambunctious child ever was less likely to cause trouble than she was to actually eat all her vegetables.

"And try not to sneak into the morgue again okay? You nearly gave that orderly a heart attack…" She chastised but being the least strict mother ever, couldn't stand to see the disheartened look on her daughter's face. "But… I guess if you were going to have a heart attack, the _morgue_ would be the most convenient place to have one, huh?" Keiko's heart swelled as Hotaru broke into giggles at the morbid joke.

She never got to spend too much quality time with Hotaru with her job being as hectic as it was and Hotaru herself largely favoring her father so it was it was blessing that her daughter loved the hospital so much even if it wasn't going to win her any friends in school.

"Here's some money for the vending machine and Glenn is working the shift today so try making a game out of finding him, yeah? He's real sneaky for a janitor so it'll be challenge for a little genius like you." It was weird how much the girl liked the oddball janitor but he was great with kids so Keiko didn't mind. "Now run along. You know where everything is."

Keiko watched fondly as her daughter took the money and set off in search of the janitor, no doubt she'll get him as an in to the morgue again. She was way too comfortable with the dead for it to be a good thing but Keiko couldn't think of a reason to stop it if made her happy. However; her maternal moment was interrupted by a strict voice from behind.

"It isn't very _responsible_ to let your daughter run free in the hospital during such hectic hours, Dr. Tomoe." Keiko sighed in mild frustration. She was an amazing doctor, even better than herself but Dr. Mizuno had stick up her butt a mile long and a mean streak a mile wide. "She's walked these halls for longer than _you_ have, Saeko. My Hotaru knows what she's doing. She's smart."

The blue haired doctor didn't even try to hide her scoff. " _I_ know smart daughters better than anybody. How _smart_ can a ten year old be?" Keiko felt her irritation grow but at this point, she was used to the other woman's personality. "Smart _enough_. And the hospital needs all the smart people it can get right now, so if you think _you're_ smart enough for it, how about we get to it?"

Not waiting around to see the scowl that was no doubt on the other doctor's face, Keiko turned on her heel and made for the ER. Something about today was riling up the city, accident and violence rates spiking for some reason. It was making Keiko herself somewhat testy, too. Even Saeko, who was usually annoying but never when there were more important things at hand.

Whatever it was, it dragged her from bed so early in the morning her husband wasn't back from the labs and even Hotaru, with her weird sleep cycle, was still awake. Today was going to suck, she just knew it.

* * *

Mitsuyoshi Hino despite being the latest High Priest and only child of the previous Head never inherited any of the mystical powers that the main family Hino line was famous for, a fact he had a veritable lifetime to come to terms with. And with his spiritually sensitive daughter fighting for her life in the hospital, for the first time in centuries, the Hikawa Shrine was as blind as the rest of the world.

Now more than ever, he cursed himself for his _defect_ , feeling helpless and not knowing for sure what fate awaited his Risa. Ejected from the hospital room once visiting hours expired and ejected from the _Haiden_ by his own traitorous students too easily distracted by his worried pacing, the Head Priest was isolated to the residential area of his own shrine.

With nothing to do but wring his hands together, he contemplated trying his luck at breaking into the hospital and wondered what divine consequences he would have to face for it.

Just as he decided that it would be worth it despite whatever the gods threw at him, he felt the strongest earthquake in his lengthy lifetime as it shifted his entire house.

"Alright, _fine_! I'll wait for visiting hours tomorrow!" He screamed at the heavens and the heavens screamed back as something crashed straight through the first floor ceiling of his two floored house.

Immediately, the quakes stopped and the old man cursed his old bones as they took a while longer to settle, but didn't take his eyes away from the epicenter of the crash.

The violently splintered wood surrounding the hole in the floor meant he couldn't look into it but it didn't matter cause whatever that fell into it decided at that moment to come flying out of it, surprising his old heart.

Unfortunately he was a little too energetic for his age, meaning he wasn't lucky enough to be hospitalized alongside his daughter.

"Oh ho _ho!_ For a vengeful deity, you're quite the beauty aren't you?" Perhaps those weren't the best choice of words when faced with a fierce looking girl who shrugged off a fall through three layers of reinforced hardwood but he couldn't help who he was. A man who appreciates the beauty of the female form, or in more prudish terms, a pervert.

The usual reaction he expected was disgust and the slightly more extreme reaction was physical retribution but this girl seemed to almost welcome his appreciation, smirking wildly. "Your eyes seem to be working fine even at your age, grandpa."

 _Oh my, a flirt!_ He hadn't had the luck to meet a flirt at the shrine for a very long time. Maybe he had a chance-

And the golden beauty immediately flickered out of existence.

He didn't even have the time to grieve her disappearance before his idiot pupils came carving through the collapsed doorway of the house.

" _Okannushi-sama!_ Are you unharmed?! _"_ They screamed as they filed into the mostly undamaged room with a girl sized hole in the roof and floor.

"Unfortunately." An earthquake and a deity visit his home and he wasn't even scuffed up enough to warrant a hospital visit.

* * *

"Michiru! What was that?" Artemis cried out at the still groggy sailor soldier who would have admonished his use of her civilian name in the presence of one but Tuxedo Mask was still very much unconscious. Not that it would've changed much. The sailor transformation hid nothing of her face and she was a world famous violinist and heiress. She usually had to bank on people's ignorance of the finer arts to get by.

"Not sure. It seems she isn't completely here yet. I can sense her all over the world at once."

Artemis scowled, which Michiru would go to the grave denying was actually adorable. "The portal is closing… If she doesn't completely transition over, she might fade away."

Michiru was combating the instinct to comfort him by scratching his chin when Artemis simply got over it in the span of a second. "There's nothing to worry about. There's no possible way someone like her could possibly fade."

* * *

"-no, mom. I told you. I'm still racing for a living and _yes_ , it makes a _tooon_ of money. Don't you read the paper? I mean besides the Snobs Daily and the funnies? Or watch the sports channel? What am I saying? Of course not. That might _actually_ physically hurt you."

It always drove Haruka crazy, talking to her mother, so Haruka always drove like crazy to calm herself down.

"-ready talked about this. I have _absolutely_ no interest in men. That's why I left home in the first place. I'm glad you didn't completely ignore me like dad but I wish you wouldn't act like this was me just _rebelling_ against you guys. I really am a le-"

Of course an agitated driver on the road while on the phone in the middle of the night wasn't exactly the safest thing in the world, as a pro racer she knew that much. So as a precaution she had a headset prepared especially for the occasion. It still wasn't right to be so distracted on the road but she always took unused roads and she did this frequently enough to be confident that it was safe…

…was what she thought just as a blonde figure ran out of the surrounding trees and straight into her path.

" _MOMMY!_ " Haruka screamed in an undignified manner she would go to the grave denying ever doing as she swerved to avoid the fellow blonde only for her tail end to smash into the person where they had dodged to, sending them flying into the asphalt face first.

Minutes pass as the stranger lay prone, bleeding out into the ground and Haruka sat with a terrified stare into nothing and a white knuckled grip on her wheel, sanity, bladder and what was left of her nerves.

Was there even any use checking on the body? It was definitely a body. The soon to be ex pro racer was pushing her circuit worthy car to its absolute limit which was in hindsight overkill on a civilian road. Literally, as it turned out.

Eventually choosing not to take chances with people's lives Haruka, after making sure she could walk, made her way over to the girl's corpse.

Or not. If all the blood that was still pouring out of her was any indication, and that what she read was true, then that meant she was still alive.

Fetching her headset out her car and ignoring her wailing mother, Haruka phoned the police as she tried to keep the dying girl alive. Difficult when she's taken a grand total of zero first aid lessons and paid more attention to the nurses than the patients whenever a hospital was concerned.

However the moment she touched the collapsed girl, she burst awake and flew onto her feet in a flash despite her heavy wounds. Surprised, Haruka fell flat on her ass as she felt the girl's foot whizz past her face, narrowly missing her.

When Haruka was sure she was still alive and safe, she opened her eyes to see a girl. The kind of girl she'd totally be hitting on in almost any other situation.

As it was, the professional, or at least ex-professional racer sat frozen stiff, staring with her mouth open.

The girl was just as frozen but her posture was more out of aggression than Haruka's fear for her life.

But instead of attacking, she cringed in pain, growled almost inhumanly at Haruka and took off into the woods just as fast as she'd come. If not for the worryingly large pool of blood, Haruka would've thought she'd imagined it all.

As it was, she simply called her mother back.

"Hey, mom. Yeah, no, wait, please… I'm _safe_ , mom. It's alright. Can we just… I wanna see you right now… Can we meet up? I just _really_ need to see you right now."

* * *

She had just arrived this evening at her new home and she was dead tired to be sure, but for the first time in a long time, Usagi found it impossible to fall asleep.

Of course no one expects her to be that comfortable this quickly, as Narumi was insistent on repeating as he dropped her off but Usagi always prided herself in getting along almost immediately with anybody but funnily enough, when she found the perfect _Usagi_ shaped hole in this new family, she had a frustratingly rough time fitting in.

Unable to stand it any longer, Usagi left her too soft bed, far superior to the orphanage, past the barren spaces of her new room, more spacious than her room back at the orphanage but a million times less warm, and out the unlocked door, immediately coming face to face with a door across the hall identical to hers if not for the faded stickers of bands and the like from a decade ago.

It didn't take a genius that Usagi was not to figure out that it belonged to the Aino's late daughter and Usagi's curiosity was almost painful whenever she saw it and wondered if there was any way in. What sort of girl was she to replace? What was she like? What did she like to do? She wanted to know everything but it was unlikely to broach the subject with the obviously still grieving parents.

As it was, Usagi kept to the stairs and through the living room towards the kitchen to get herself some water. She didn't want to risk anything more, she simply didn't know if they would mind if she raided their pantry.

Nursing a tall glass of water, Usagi busied herself with examining the many family photos that lined the walls, many of which had three people in it.

Usagi wondered why they leave these pictures hanging when they clearly must cause them anguish every day but ultimately understood the need to remember.

 _It is fine if you want to forget the pain, Usagi. But once a person dies, the only place they live on is in the memories of their loved ones._ Narumi had told her and Usagi took his words to heart.

Ignoring how those words were conflicting with her most recent life decisions, Usagi picked up the most recent photo with all three of the Aino's from a photo shelf.

Sanae Aino was clearly an extremely fierce woman once but to Usagi, it seemed like whatever ire that was in her was simply burned out, leaving an extremely weary woman who walked on eggshells around Usagi and looked at her as if she was seeing someone else. Takagi Aino's countenance had remained largely the same to a casual observer but to Usagi, the pain was clear as day. He had aged far more than the decade that had passed since this photo.

Looking at the third figure in the picture was a bizarre experience. It was like looking at a mirror but her reflection shone far brighter than Usagi ever believed she did.

Minako Aino only resembled her only in the loosest sense. Long blonde hair. Blue eyes. Short stature. They were almost identical… in concept. But the dead blonde's hair was more golden and her eyes a sharper blue with a cunning and mischievous countenance as opposed to Usagi's demure and innocent.

But it was clear as day. Minako Aino was a star that stole everyone's attention and had kept it with her like it was her birthright.

"So pretty…" Usagi mumbled absentmindedly.

"Right? _I'd_ do me if I could, too."

Usagi was not exactly what you called nimble or agile but at this moment, she could swear that she had never moved faster in her life as she literally threw herself away from the photo shelf almost all the way up the stairs.

The glass that she'd dropped in her panicked haste stood a foot above the ground with the new intruder's fingers gripped tightly over its mouth. Calmly, in stark contrast with Usagi's heart which beat faster than her namesake's, the stranger disposed of the remaining water in the sink and shelved it away with practiced ease.

"That was dangerous, princess. You aren't even wearing slippers, you would've _definitely_ cut your feet up in the dark like this if I wasn't here." The stranger admonished playfully before adding, "But then again, if I wasn't here you wouldn't have dropped the glass."

With that, the stranger found the light switch in the pitch black darkness that Usagi failed to find just as easily as she'd put away the glass and when they flipped the switch, Usagi nearly fainted.

" _G-g-gh-ooos-_! " She began to scream but the supposedly dead girl was on her in a flash and had her palm over her mouth. " _SSHH!_ You don't want to do that!"

Ordinarily that wouldn't have changed anything, but there nothing about this situation that was ordinary. And when she felt the warmth of the ghost girl's soft palm over her lips, Usagi's heart accelerated for a whole different reason.

"I'd _really_ like to spend a little more time with a cutie like you, princess. But it looks like my time here is up." None of her words were processing and Usagi could only nod dumbly.

Giggling at her dumbfounded expression, the ghost of Minako Aino took Usagi's hand in her free one and put the palm to her mouth, kissing it.

" _This_ isn't goodbye, princess. It's a see you again. But till then, take care of them for me. Princess Serenity."

And with a flirty wink from her and a flustered blink from Usagi, she was gone, the warmth on her face fading with her but the lipstick on her palm confirmed that this was _not_ a dream.

* * *

Tonight, Makoto counted herself as lucky.

She may have gotten grounded for three weekends for coming home late without letting them know but the good news was that it was just the second weekend and her mom decided this week would be enough. Something had her mother in a good mood. Or rather, a relatively good mood.

And then Makoto had dug through the attic after her parents fell asleep and dug up an old telescope she was sure her father had lost.

Choosing to maybe see if there was something to the whole Astronomy Club thing, Makoto climbed on to the roof, something her mother would surely murder her for, and set it up to watch the stars way past midnight, another thing her mother would be livid over.

Ignoring the possible punishments, Makoto instead focused on the stars and tried to figure out how to use a telescope with the help of Google.

A random bit of fiddling here and there later, Makoto aimed the thing at what she thought was in the general direction of Venus which was supposed to be visible outside today.

What she saw instead had her double take. Twice.

"Was that… a _girl?_ Falling from the _sky_?!"

Startled and panicked, Makoto rushed to try and head over in the general direction of that girl's drop zone but in her haste, she slipped and fell off the roof. Into the bushes two floors down.

The noise woke her parents and after spending a week in the hospital, she was sure to get another month of grounding.

Tonight, Makoto was definitely the unluckiest girl in the world.

* * *

"It's stabilizing. The portal has closed, over ten miles above sea level over Minato, Tokyo." Michiru grinned wryly at her friend and benefactor. "She seems to have made it through. If the fall from earth's _stratosphere_ doesn't kill her I'd say this mission was a success."

Artemis's own smile was genuine. "Then it is a success. You can leave now, Neptune, Tuxedo mask. Thank you two, from the _bottom_ of my heart."

* * *

For the second time tonight, Mitsuyoshi Hino's residence shook fiercely as another extreme force struck its roof, penetrating both floors instantly. The man himself was regretting rejecting his pupil's offers to stay at their homes, mostly out of pride and stubbornness.

But when he reluctantly began to investigate and noticed the identical holes in his roof and floor, a small hope lit in his perverted heart.

Indeed, the same girl crawled out of the splintered crater but with much less grace and vigor. To the older man's alarm, she was bleeding heavily all over and while she seemed to still be conscious, it was clear that she wasn't going to be for very long.

Forgetting everything about the circumstances of the ridiculous situation he was in, the eldest Hino carried the weakened girl over to a safer part of his home and tried to offer his help which was refused quite firmly.

" _Leave it._ Just for today. I'll be better tomorrow and I'll go to the hospital then. Leave it for now. Easier to explain to the doctors tomorrow." She commanded, a far cry from the flirt he met mere hours ago but the authority in her voice left no room to argue. As he made to leave after he was sure she was as comfortable as you could be with a half demolished body, the golden haired beauty spoke again.

"Would today be October by any chance?"

He motioned to the calendar in the room. "The twenty second. Yes." He noticed her eyes widen as her gaze fell to the calendar on the wall but had immediately tamed it to nonchalance. "Thank you. For everything." He waved the gratitude off. "I might not usually act like it but I _am_ a spiritual man. I couldn't leave a goddess in danger. I would probably go to hell."

She chuckled through the pain and he took that as his cue to leave but as he slid the doors closed, he noticed his guest glance at the moon and mutter something his hearing, which his age had yet to claim, caught.

"And thank you, too… Artemis…"

* * *

As soon as his two guests had left, Artemis collapsed into the ground, exhausted, no longer able to keep himself on his feet. His charges had not had enough energy to spare and he'd needed to step in and add his own meager reserves.

But it was definitely worth it. He had done it. He still couldn't believe it.

After nearly ten years…

He had finally done it!

Dragging his small body over to the window, Artemis collapsed into a heap of cloth he'd used as a bed when Luna was absent. The moonlight was comforting even with the chilly night air. Somewhere out there, his best friend was also there, under the same moon, in the same moonlight.

Before his eyes shut against his will, they desperately searched for something in the clear night sky.

Finding it, he breathed a sigh of relief before letting his eyes shut and rest for real for the first time in years.

The moon was bright out, but to Artemis, Venus was far brighter.

"I'm sorry I took so long… Happy Birthday, Mina."

* * *

A/N: Things are finally picking up but I'm at an impasse. Writing this, I found a whole new direction to take this story in. IMO it's interesting but since I had the original idea in mind as I wrote the earlier chapters, I think I'll write that in a different story.

Also, I've been watching a bit of PGSM, and I must say, I like the Nephrite Ami thing a bit and the Motoki Makoto is a cute beta couple. So I might add those in unless you guys have a request for them? Of course PGSM only reaffirmed my love of Reinako and the OG of sailor moon ships, Usagi and Mamoru so those are static. So no, that scene is not a sign of UsaMina though I have to say, I like the idea of that ship.

Now on the story itself, all those things involving the Hikawa shrine are things I looked up but not being Japanese, I'm not perfectly certain on so correct me if I'm wrong.

Mitsuyoshi is from Rei's grandpa's voice actor's only other role that I recognize, Anzai-sensei from Slam Dunk, though, fun fact, he voiced _and_ Akuma. I'm basing him more on the manga's interpretation as a perverted old man than the anime's literal sex offender cause honestly? I'm real tired of that trope. Lookin' at you Roshi, Mineta.

The _Haiden_ is the hall of worship in a typical shinto shrine and the Okannushi is like the bigger deal version of the kannushi or shinshoku or shrine priest. Also I'm headcanoning Grandpa Hino to be Rei's maternal grandpa.

And if Glenn sounds out of place in a Japanese hospital that's only cause that's Glenn Matthews. From Scrubs. It would make sense for him to be there cause _why not?_

Look forward to the next chapter.


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